Four visitors hailing from Vietnam, Thailand, and Laos arrived in Pensacola in August 2010 for the State Department’s Project on Women’s Roles in Sustainability.
Themes for this project included:
· Best practices in land development
· Equal opportunity, affirmative action, and labor laws
· The Deepwater Oil Spill: The impact on food security and the environment
After settling into the Pensacola Beach scene on Saturday, our visitors were welcomed on Sunday evening for dinner at the homes of local residents, Sonja Nelson, Jack and “Cookie” Kichler, and Randy and Sunaree Bullock.
Monday’s meetings began with a video conference with Mr. Bill Mahan, a Food Researcher and Seafood Specialist who works out of the Apalachicola Extension office in Franklin County’s University of Florida -IFAS. Mr. Mahan discussed how local agencies insure the safety of commercial seafood supplies. Carrie Stevenson, a local Escambia County Extension Agent, arranged the meeting and facilitated the call. Pamela Allen and Libbie Johnson also joined in the lively conversation. Next, the group participated in a roundtable discussion with county experts in waste management, land development, and soil and water conservation before touring the award winning Perdido Landfill Facilities. In attendance were: Dee Dee Green, Doyle Butler, Eddie Cooper, Sandra Jennings, Ron Hixson, Drew Holmer, and Pat Johnson. The always-helpful Cheryl Watson in the Escambia County Bureau of Neighborhoods helped arrange for several of the county employees to attend. To round out the day, the visitors became acquainted with county and federal labor and equal employment laws during a meeting with Paulette Stallworth, a Supervisor for the Escambia County Human Resources Department.
The following day the group met with Taylor “Chips” Kirschenfeld for a discussion on the impacts of the Gulf Oil Spill on the local environment. Mr. Kirschenfeld presented each member of the group with an Honorary Citizenship certificate, courtesy of Mayor Mike Wiggins of Pensacola. Afterwards, they were joined by Brent Wipf for a visit to Project Greenshores. Next, the visitors enjoyed a tour of Joe Patti’s Seafood Company conducted by Perry and Claude Baniakas and were able to discuss the business impacts of the recent Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill on the seafood industry with owner/manager Frank Patti as well as to speak to some of the local Vietnamese workers. To round out the group’s visit they met with the President of the Local Transportation Union 1395, Michael Lowery, and another union representative, Gerri Bell, to discuss issues facing local unions, and negotiation techniques that have proved successful for them recently.
